Re: Two questions about Likert scales

[truhons]

On the issue of comparing two groups on their responses to a Likert scale, I
came across the same issue in some of my summer research. In the military
Blacks and women rate the equal opportunity climate worse than Whites and
men. Is this because it is worse for them or do the items mean different
things to them? I used item response theory to examine their survey, and
it may be helpful in answering this question.

Stephen Truhon
Dept. of Social Sciences
Winston-Salem State University
Winston-Salem, NC 27110